Career pathways of women in construction: boots on the ground

To date, limited research has taken a systems-wide approach to explore the pathway of women into trades and semi-skilled roles in the Victorian construction industry. This research contributes to an evidence-base informed by the voices of schoolgirls and school career educators, women in apprentice and trainee roles, and trainers and employers, founded on a rigorous research design. Findings outlined in this report enable a move from anecdotal evidence to a strong evidence-base which can be used to inform targeted interventions that support the attraction and retention of tradeswomen and semi-skilled women into construction.

This research responds to the Victorian Women in Construction Strategy 2019-2022 Building Gender Equality [available in VOCEDplus at TD/TNC 150.581]. The objective of this research is to understand how girls and women are attracted to and experience apprenticeships and training in construction-based trades in the Victorian state of Australia. The research aims are to: (1) identify the barriers and facilitating factors of women entering construction-based apprenticeships and traineeship; (2) explore the experiences of women undertaking apprenticeships and traineeships in construction; (3) identify ways to effectively promote construction trades as a viable career pathway to school aged girls and women; and (4) explore how apprenticeship and traineeship programs in Victoria are structured and governed to identify how apprentices and trainees are formally supported.

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